Monday, January 18, 2016

Absences by Philip Larkin

Rain patters on a sea that tilts and sighs,
Fast-running floors, collapsing into hollows;
Tower suddenly, spray-haired , contrariwise.
A wave drops like a wall; another follows,
Wilting and scrambling, tirelessly at play
Where there are no ships and no shallows.

Above the sea, the yet more shoreless day
Riddled by wind, trains lit-up galleries;
They shift to giant ribbing, sift away.